Vehicle.



S. H. GOODIN.

VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE I0, I9I4.

KU. M M. MW )09E MO I u Na0 as G ou@ H An S dH W MM lylj.,

S. H. GOODIN.

VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNI: lo. 1914.

1,148,769. Patented Aug. 3,1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

S. H. GOODIN.

vEHlLE.

APPLICATION FILED IUNE I0. |914.

1,148,769. Patented Aug. 3,1915.

- 5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

S. H. GOODIN.

VEHICLE.

APPLlcATIoN FILED JUNE 1o. 1914.

Patented Aug.' 3, 1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

SHGOOUIN S ATES VEHICLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 3, 1915.

Application filed .Tune 10, 1914. Serial No..84 4,252.

T0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, SABASTIAN H. GooDIN, acitizen of the United States, residing at Voodland, in the county ofYolo and State of California., have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Vehicles, of which the following is a specification,reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

2r:Ehis invention relates to certain improvements in vehicles and hasrelation more particularly to a device of this general character whichis motor driven; and an object of the invention is to provide a deviceof this general character having novel and improved means whereby thedirection of travel of the vehicle may be controlled in an effective andconvenient manner.

Furthermore, it is an object of the invention to provide a novel andimproved device of this general character wherein all of the wheels arepower driven, certain of such wheels being adapted to take the maindrivingload while the remaining of the wheels are adapted, mainly, forthe load strain.

The invention also has for its object to provide a device of thisgeneral character having novel and improved means whereby the peripheraltravel of certain of the wheels may be retarded and the peripheral speedof other of the wheels accelerated when the vehicle is making a turn.

The invention consists in the details of construction and in thecombination and arrangement of the several parts whereby certainimportant advantages are attained and the device is rendered simpler,less expensive and otherwise more convenient and advantageous for use,all as will be hereinafter more fully set4 forth.

The novel features of the invention will be carefully defined in theappended claims.

In order that my invention may be the better understood, I will nowproceed to describe the same with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, wherein- F igure 1 is a top plan View of a vehicle constructedin accordance with an embodiment of my invention, with certain of theparts in section and the motor omitted; Fig. 2 is a longitudinalsectional view taken through the device as illustrated in Fig. l, withthe motor included; Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially onthe line 3--3 of Fig. Q;l Fig. 4 is a sectional View taken substantiallyon the line 4 4 of Fig.

3; Fig. 5 is an elevational view of the outer end of the flexible shaftherein included; Fig. 6 is al sectional view taken substantially on theline G--G of Fig. 2; Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken substantially onthe line 7-7 of Fig. G; Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken substantiallyon the line 8-8 of Fig. 6; Fig. 9 is an enlarged detail view, in topplan, of the spring members herein included; Fig. 10 is an enlargedfragmentary view, in perspective, illustrating certain details of thesteering mechanism herein embodied; Fig. 11 is a. fragmentary view,partly in section and partly in elevation, illustrating further detailsof the steering mechanism; Fig. 12 is an enlarged fragmentary view insection and partly in detail,illustrating a connection, herein embodied,and one movable rod and a movable disk; and Fig. 13 is a sectional viewtaken substantially on the line 13-13 of Fig. 2.

As disclosed in the accompanying drawings, l denotes a truck frame ofany ordinary or preferred construction and herein disclosed assubstantially rectangular in form and having disposed longitudinallythereof and located at predetermined distances opposite the longitudinalcenter of the frame, the driving shafts 2-2, herein disclosed asoperatively supported by the bearings 3 depending from the frame, andeach of such shafts is provided intermediate its length with a pinion 4operatively engaged with a pinion 5 carried by the shaft 6 comprised inthe differential 7, such differential being operatively engaged, in aconventional manner, with the motor S, herein disclosed as of aninternal combustion type.

Suitably connected, as indicated at 9, to the longitudinal beams l0 ofthe truck frame and depending therefrom are the elliptical springs ll ofany ordinary or preferred construction and suitably secured to the lowerportion of each of such springs at substantially the longitudinal centerthereof is a bearing 1Q in which is operatively mounted the journal orbearing box 14 provided at its front face with the outwardly projectingsleeve or skein 15, through which is adapted to be directed the floatingaxle 1G, the inner extremity whereof being angular in cross section andadapted to be engaged within a socket 17 formed on the outer extremityof the ieXible shaft 1S. I do not wish to be understood as limitingmyself as to the llO exact construction of the iexible shaft as I desirein practice to employ any flexible shaft which properly meets therequirements of practice. One end portion of the flexible shaft 18 isoperatively supported in a bearing 19 projecting upwardly from a crosstie bar 20, while interposed between the opposite extremity of theflexible shaft, or more particularly the sockety 17, and the adjacentface of the box 14 are the anti-friction members 2l, herein disclosed asspherical bodies positioned in the registering run-ways 2.2.

Rotatably supported on the sleeve or skem 15 is the hub 23 of asupporting wheel 24, the outer end of such hub being adapted to beclosed by a cap 25, such cap being provided in its inner face and at itsaxial center with the 'inwardly directed socket 26 angular in crosssection and which is adapted to receive the forward extremity of thefloating axle 16 whereby it will be readily perceived that thesupporting wheel 24 will be caused to rotate upon rotation of saidlioating axle.

As herein disclosed, the supporting wheels 24 are eight in number andequally disposed at opposite longitudinal sides of the frame l, and eachof the floating axles 16 of the end wheels is herein set forth aspositively driven from a shaft through the medium of a' sprocket chain28 which is directed around a sprocket 29 fixed to the flexible shaft 18and also disposed around a sprocket wheel 29al fixed to a transverselydisposed stub shaft 30 operatively supported by the frame l and beingoperatively connected, as at 31, through the medium of suitableintermeshing gears, with a shaft 2. While self-evident, it may be wellto state that the cnnection 31 at opposite sides of the frame 1 are soarranged as to cause the floating axles 16 to rotate in the samedirection. As herein embodied, each of the floating axles 16 of theintermediate supporting wheels is caused to operatel under the influenceof a friction drive. The inner extremities of this latter floating axleare operatively connected with a transverse stub shaft 32 in a mannersubstantially identical to that which has been set forth relative to theend floating axles. The shaft, as herein embodied, is capable of endwisemovement.

through its supporting bearings 33, said movement in one direction beingcreated under the influence of the expansible meniber 34, hereindisclosed as a coil spring interposed between one of -thebearings 33 andthe sprocket wheel 29a.

The outer extremity of the shaft 32 has suitably affixed thereto thefriction disk 35 adapted to be engaged by the friction disk 36 keyed toa shaft 2 so as to rotate therewith but capable of movementlongitudinally thereof in a manner and for a purpose which willhereinafter be more fully set forth. As is believed to be self-evident,the end supporting wheels 24 are adapted to take the main driving loadwhile the intermediate wheels 24 are, mainly, for the load strain.

Projecting upwardly from the frame 1- at a predetermined point is thesteering column 37, the lower extremity of the shaft 38, includedtherein, -being provided with a worm 39 adapted to mesh with the wormshaft 40 and depending from said shaft 40 is a rock arm 41 having itslower extremity operatively engaged through the medium of the link 42with the transversely disposed steering beam 43 pivotally secured midwayof itsv longitudinal axis to the frame l. The opposite extremities ofthe beam 43 are operatively engaged with the longitudinally disposedsteering rods 44 mounted for endwise reciprocal movement in the bearings3 hereinbefore referred tto. By this arrangement, 1t will be perceivedthat upon requisite rotation being imparted to the shaft `38 through themedium of the hand wheel 45, the steering rods 44 will be caused to movein unison but in reverse directions.

Projecting upwardly from each of the journal or bearing boxes 14 at itsvertical axis is a steering shaft 46 which is loosely directed throughthe adjacent bearing 12 and spring 11 and is also loosely directedthrough a sleeve 47 interposed between the bearing 12 and the connection9, said sleeve being positively connected with the bearings 12 butloosely disposed through the connection 9 so that no obstruction will beoffered to the desired operation of the spring. l

The upper extremities of the four forward steering shafts 46 areprovided with the inwardly disposed arms 48 Aoperatively engaged, asindicated at 49, with an adjacent steering rod 44. The remaining or rearsteering shafts 46 are provided with the outwardly disposed arms 50,adjacent longitudinal alined arms being tied or connected by theintermediate link or pitman 51, while the adjacent or inner arms 48 and50 "are operatively connected by the links or pitmen 52 whereby it willbe readily-perceived that during the steering operation, the Vforwardand rear supporting wheels will be caused to swing in oppositedirections so that a desired turn of the vehicle may be effected.

In order that the peripheral speed of the intermediate wheels may bereduced in accordance with the angle of turn, I have depending from eachof the steering rods 44 a fork 53 adapted to coact with an adjacentsliding disk 36 whereby it will be readily perceived that such disk 36will be adjusted relative to the axial center of the disk 35 uponmovement being imparted to the adjacent steering rod 44. In order tocompensate for any unevenness in the road- Way, over which the vehiclemay travel, I find it of advantage to interpose in each of the cross tiebars 20 the links 54, and I also find it of advantage to have thejournal or bearing boxes 14, at each longitudinal side of the vehicle,connected by the tie links 55, such links being herein disclosed aspivotally engaged at their extremities with suitable bracketsoperatively engaged with the depending trunnion 56 of such bearing orjournal boxes 14.

From the foregoing description, it isthought to be obvious that avehicle constructed in accordance with my invention is modificationwithout material departure from the principles and spirit thereof andfor this reason I do not Wish to be understood as limiting myself to theprecise arrangement and formation of the several parts herein shown incarrying out my invention in practice.

I claim:

1. A device of the character described comprising a frame, a pluralityof journal boxes carried by the frame along the opposite sides thereofand movable about substantially vertical axes,1su'pporting wheelsoperatively engaged with the boxes, driving means for the wheels, asteering shaft projecting upwardly from each of the boxes atsubstantially the axial center thereof, an arm projecting laterally fromthe upper ex'- tremity of the steering shaft, certain of vsaid armsbeing reversely directed relative to the remainder of the arms, and asteeringmechanism operatively engaged with the arms, said steeringmechanism operating to rotate all of the boxes in unison but to impartmovement to certain of the arms in a direction reverse to the directionof movement of the remainder of the arms.

2. A device of the character described comprising a frame, a pluralityof journal boxes carried by the frame along the oppo site sides thereofand movable about substantially vertical axes, supporting Wheels jectingupwardly from each of the boxes at substantially the axial centerthereof, an arm projecting laterally from the upper extremity of thesteering shaft, certain of said arms being reversely directed relativeto the remainder of the arms, a steering mechanism including two rodsdisposed longitudinally of the frame and capable of reciprocation, oneof said rods being operatively engaged with the arms extending in onedirection and the second rod being operatively engaged with the armsextending in the opposite direction, and means foi` reciprocating saidrods in unison.

3. A device of the character described comprising a frame, a pluralityof journal boxes carried by the frame along opposite sides thereof andmovable about substantially vertical axes, an endwise movable rodsupported by the frame and operatively engaged with the boxes for movingthe same about their axes, a shaft disposed longitudinally of the frame,supporting wheels operatively engaged with theboxes, stub shafts carriedby the frame and disposed transversely thereof, an operative connectionbetween the stub shafts and the supporting wheels, a disk carried byeach shaft, disks slidably engaged upon the longitudinally disposedshaft and adapted for rotation therewith and in engagement with thedisks of the stub shafts, and an operative connection between `the rodand the slidable disks whereby the same are caused to move in.

unison.

4. A device ofthe character described comprising a frame, a plurality ofjournal boxes carried by the frame along the opposite sides thereof andmovable about substantially vertical axes, supporting Wheels operativelyengaged with the boxes, driving means for the wheels, steering mechanismoperatively engaged with the boxes, and a tie bar connectingtransversely alined boxes, said boxes being pivotally engaged therewith,said tie bar having its opposite extremities composed of pivotallyengaged sections.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aiix my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

SABASTIAN H. GGODIN.

Witnesses: l

J. E. STRONG, RALPH KNIGHT.

copies o! this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0.

